Conquest

Hereward has been banished as an outlaw by King Edward the Confessor.  Hereward finds solitude in the western forest of England.  There he also meets an old man, who tasks him with finding his daughter and asking of her The Talisman.  Hereward is then to go in search of his own destiny.

In his quest he meets Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, King of the Welsh and serves him at the Battle of Hereford against the forces of King Edward.  He also makes friends with Martin and Einar.  It is in Hereford that he finds Torfida, daughter of the old seer.  He discovers that she also has the sight.  After the battle, the four new friends head westward.  Hereward wants to get to Dublin before winter arrives.  The following year the four friends travel to Scotland to help Macbeth.  Unfortunately for Macbeth that was to come to naught.

The quartet's travels take them on to Northern Europe where both Einar and Martin find wives and Torfida and Hereward marry.  They then travel south to Constantinople, and across to Rome where they meet the pope.  He blesses the couple, but not the talisman that Hereward wears.

Serving in southern Italy, Hereward learns new tactics.  The group gains a new friend in Alphonso of Granada.  But, Hereward is drawn to the north by rumours of threats to England.  In Rouen, they enter the service of William, Duke of Normandy.  However, they are not totally happy there, for they know he has laid claim to the throne of England once Edward dies.

Hereward is struck by the brutality of the Norman Duke, so when the opportunity to join Harold Godwinson as he returns to England, the group jumps at it.  Edward is on the verge of death and England teeters on the brink of civil war shortly after their return.  Edward died early in 1066, and the Witan declared Harold king.  William was enraged and planned an invasion, while Tostig, Harold's estranged brother plotted with Hardarda to invade the north with his Vikings.  Harold had to prepare for invasions to the north and south.

Late in September, Hardarda invades and takes York.  Harold gathers a small force and marches north to do battle.  Just outside York at Stamford Bridge, Harold is outnumbered four to one, but achieves a decisive victory.  Within a short time he is informed of William's invasion on the south coast.  He heads to London to meet with his earls, who suggest caution.  However, Harold wants to rid England of the Norman scourge as soon as possible.

Harold has the height of land at Senlac Ridge, but unfortunately the battle does not go his way.  William ensures that he is brutally killed.  Hereward is grievously injured attempting to protect his king, and fortunately he is taken from the battlefield by his three friends.  Once recovered, Hereward and the group of friends move to Spain, but minus Torfida who has taken ill.

The group leads a quiet life in Spain, but before long, Hereward is called back to England to lead an uprising.  Will the tactics he learned in Spain help him put Prince Edgar on the throne of England? Or is it just total futility?

Author Stewart Binns has written an intriguing novel based on little known historical fact.  It was a book that had me engaged from start to finish; I could not put it down.